What distinguished 'art' from 'Art' ? Types of display, collecting, certain kinds of knowledge becoming matters of profession, etc. A specialised and fascinating study that puts the subject ... read more
Set in post-war Japan, this is a Chandleresque tale of murder, political corruption and black marketeering, with a heavy-drinking investigator out on a limb. Familiar tropes perhaps, but in... read more
The author's father was an American soldier who fell in love with a Japanese girl on the devastated island. This affecting book probes her own complex feeling and the attitudes among which s... read more
The author moved to Japan aged 21, immersing herself in language and culture with such success that she is now a literary translator. Her route there was by no means straightforward; this bo... read more
Takes the reader from the earliest written accounts to the present in vivid portraits. The empress Masako is there, and presumably princess Murasaki Shikibu, whose diary is not only fascina... read more
A fascinating introduction to one of the most important Buddhis texts, balanced by Kerr's experiences in Kyoto, Tibet, Mongolia, Korea and India. Kerr has spent most of his adult life living... read more
Published in February of this year to accompany the V&A's splendid exhibition - delayed, like so much else, to the late summer. Very good mix of exquisite antique pieces and contemporary fli... read more